Sudan: Issues for Congress

July 1, 2014
IF00034

July 1, 2014
Sudan: Issues for Congress
When it was unified (1956-2011), Sudan was Africa’s
largest nation, and the site of its longest running civil
war. In 2011, after decades of fighting broadly described as
a conflict between the “Arab” Muslim north and “African”
Christian and animist south, Sudan split in two. Mistrust
between Sudan and South Sudan lingers, and unresolved
disputes still threaten the stability of the region. The northsouth split did not resolve other simmering Sudanese
conflicts, notably in Darfur, Blue Nile, and Southern
Kordofan. Overlapping struggles between security forces
and armed groups, among ethnic groups, and between
nomadic and farming communities have caused extensive
displacement and human suffering. Across the country,
social tensions, economic pressures, and political dissent
pose ongoing challenges for the Islamist government that
came to power through a coup in 1989.
The secession of South Sudan was a major financial
blow to Sudan, which lost 75% of its oil production, twothirds of its export earnings, and more than half of its fiscal
revenues. The ongoing cost of waging war on multiple
fronts also fuels domestic criticism of the government.
Khartoum’s military operations against restive regions
continue to draw international condemnation and have
prevented Sudan from normalizing relations with many
countries, including the United States. U.S. sanctions limit
Sudan’s access to U.S. dollars and impede its access to
international financial markets and institutions. Relations
with some Arab Gulf countries have cooled, slowing
investment, amid rising concern over Sudan’s ties to Iran
and perceived support for the Muslim Brotherhood.
Background
Northern-led regimes espousing Islamist ideals have
dominated Sudan’s modern political history, often
pressing policies to force distant provinces to conform to
the center, Khartoum, rather than accommodating local
customs and institutions. Instead of forging a common
national identity, these policies exacerbated Sudan’s racial,
cultural, and religious differences. Government attempts to
Arabize and Islamize the countryside met with resistance
from southerners and other marginalized groups, sparking
two related insurgencies in the south (1955-1972 and 19832005). Groups in other regions rose up periodically, citing
local grievances, and some, in the central states of Southern
Kordofan and Blue Nile, joined the southern rebellion, the
Sudan People’s Liberation Movement/Army (SPLM/A).
The north-south war took a heavy toll on both sides, and
in 2005, the government and the SPLM signed the
Comprehensive Peace Agreement (CPA). The CPA
enshrined the south’s right to self-determination after a 6.5
year “interim period,” during which the SPLM and the
ruling National Congress Party formed a unity government.
Southern Sudanese voted overwhelmingly in January 2011
to secede and achieved independence in July of that year.
The CPA failed to resolve several contentious issues,
and talks continue on once-shared resources, such as oil,
and debts; border disputes; and related security issues.
Partial deals on security and economic cooperation were
signed in 2012, but the deployment of a joint monitoring
mission to ensure the demilitarization of the border has
been repeatedly delayed, and the two countries’ forces have
clashed periodically along the border since separation. The
proximity to the border of rebel activity in Sudan’s “new
south,” and the unresolved status of contested areas such as
the disputed Abyei region, significantly complicate
demilitarization. Abyei was accorded special status in the
CPA, and it has repeatedly been a flashpoint for violence. A
referendum for Abyei residents slated for 2011 on whether
to retain their special status in Sudan or join South Sudan
has yet to occur. The deployment of the U.N. Interim Force
for Abyei (UNISFA) in 2011 defused a violent stand-off
between Sudan and South Sudan, but tensions have risen in
the past year among communities in the area.
Ongoing Conflicts
Sudan does not discriminate between fighters and civilians
in its counter-insurgency campaigns. It finances local Arab
militia, including the new paramilitary Rapid Support
Forces (RSF), that are widely criticized for indiscriminate
and disproportionate attacks against civilians in Darfur and
Southern Kordofan. The government also continues aerial
bombings in Darfur, in violation of U.N. Security Council
resolution 1591 (2005), and has been accused of targeting
hospitals in both Darfur and Southern Kordofan in 2014.
Darfur. Fighting in Darfur among communities, armed
groups, and the military has escalated since early 2013,
causing displacement on a scale not seen since the first
years of the conflict. The 2011 Doha Document for Peace
in Darfur has failed to stop the violence. Access by
peacekeepers and humanitarian organizations to affected
communities is limited by both insecurity and government
restrictions. Attacks by armed groups against civilians,
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Sudan: Issues for Congress
peacekeepers, and relief workers is a major problem—16
peacekeepers were killed in 2013. The credibility of the
African Union-U.N. Hybrid Operation in Darfur
(UNAMID) has increasingly been questioned amid
allegations that it has self-censored its reporting related to
crimes against civilians and peacekeepers.
In 2005, the U.N. Security Council granted the
International Criminal Court (ICC) jurisdiction over
serious crimes committed in Darfur. It was the first case
the Council referred to the Court. Almost ten years later, the
ICC has yet to commence a trial, and five ICC arrest
warrants remain outstanding, including two for the arrest of
President Bashir on charges of war crimes, crimes against
humanity, and genocide. Sudan’s government remains
uncooperative with the Court. African countries have
struggled to determine how to respond to a warrant issued
against a head of state. Most are States Parties to the Rome
Statute and thus bound to execute ICC warrants, but several
have allowed Bashir to visit in recent years.
Southern Kordofan and Blue Nile. The conflict in
these states, often referred to as “the Two Areas,” is
driven by unresolved grievances against Khartoum that
date back to the north-south war, when some local groups
joined the SPLM. The CPA provided for a process in which
the two states might achieve greater autonomy within
Sudan, but the process stalled and the conflict reignited in
mid-2011. South Sudan’s ruling party has denied any ties to
the insurgency, although the rebels, known as the SPLMNorth (SPLM-N) remain linked to the SPLM by their
historic relationship. The SPLM-N and the major Darfur
rebel groups form a loose alliance, the Sudan Revolutionary
Front (SRF). Khartoum has restricted aid agencies’ access
to rebel-held areas since the onset of the conflict, and
bombings by the military and militia attacks exacerbate the
already dire humanitarian situation in these areas.
Political Challenges
The government’s proposed National Dialogue on
conflict and political issues in preparation for a new
constitution suggests recognition of mounting calls for
reform. Economic pressures have been compounded since
2011 by the loss of most of Sudan’s oil revenues (gold is
now the most important export earner), fueling periodic
protests. Sudan’s intelligence and security forces have been
quick to respond to protests and student-led uprisings, and
protestors have been killed by police on several occasions.
Reports of increasing press censorship and the detention of
political opponents in 2014 raise questions about the
regime’s commitment to an inclusive dialogue. Rifts within
the NCP also bear watching as Sudan prepares for
upcoming elections scheduled for 2015.
The Humanitarian Situation
More than 3.8 million people from Darfur and 2.4
million from Southern Kordofan, Blue Nile, and Abyei
are currently displaced or severely affected by conflict.
More than 6 million Sudanese need humanitarian aid.
Some 373,000 Darfuri have been displaced in 2014, adding
to an existing displaced population of 2 million. Chad hosts
353,000 Darfur refugees. Among those severely affected or
displaced by conflict in the Two Areas are 1.2 million
people in government-held areas and some 800,000 people
in SPLM-N-held areas. Ethiopia and South Sudan host
more than 253,000 refugees from the two states, and 44,000
Abyei residents remain displaced. Relief agencies are also
struggling to assist more than 86,000 South Sudanese
refugees who have fled to Sudan since December 2013.
U.S. Policy and Foreign Assistance
U.S. relations with Sudan are turbulent. The United
States maintains various sanctions against Sudan
through Executive Orders, permanent law, and annual
appropriations legislation, which currently prohibits
assistance to the government or to modify loans held by
Sudan. Khartoum is also subject to economic sanctions
based on debt arrears (since 1988), support for international
terrorism (since 1993), and pervasive human rights
violations. Trade sanctions were imposed in 1997.
Congress has repeatedly tightened sanctions, including
in response to abuses in Darfur. Khartoum seeks to
improve the bilateral relationship, in part to boost its
international standing and its efforts to reengage with
multilateral financial institutions. Sudan seeks relief from
almost $45 billion in external sovereign debt, much of it in
arrears. Sudan owes over $2 billion to the United States.
In the years prior to separation, Sudan ranked among
the top destinations for U.S. foreign aid globally, with
more than $1 billion allocated annually for humanitarian
and development aid and peacekeeping support. Since
South Sudan’s independence, development aid for Sudan
has been limited. The State Department has requested $9.5
million for FY2015, to support civil society and peace and
conflict mitigation efforts. Humanitarian aid totaled $260
million in FY2013 and $160 million to date in FY2014. The
State Department’s FY2015 request includes $410 million
for UNAMID and $92.5 million for UNISFA.
The State Department has designated Sudan a Country
of Particular Concern under the International Religious
Freedom Act since 1999. A Christian woman, Meriam
Ibrahim Ishaq, was sentenced to death for apostasy in May
2014, drawing international condemnation; her conviction
was overturned by an appeals court in late June 2014.
Sudan remains designated as a State Sponsor of
Terrorism, although the State Department’s Country
Reports on Terrorism describes Sudan as “a generally
cooperative counterterrorism partner.” Per the report,
Hamas continues to have a presence and raise funds in
Sudan, and elements of Al Qaeda-inspired terrorist groups
remain in the country. Sudan’s purported role in Iranian
arms smuggling to Gaza is another area of concern. In
2013, the State Department named three Sudanese involved
in the 2008 murder of two USAID employees as Specially
Designated Global Terrorists (SDGTs). For more
information, see CRS Report R42774, Sudan and South
Sudan: Current Issues for Congress and U.S. Policy.
Lauren Ploch Blanchard, lploch@crs.loc.gov, 7-7640
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